Merely naughty or seriously wrong? ‘Childish sexual experimentation’ and the presumption of doli incapax

Discusses the case of R v PF [2017] EWCA Crim 983, in which the Court of Appeal reiterated that, where a defendant is prosecuted for offences arising out of conduct that took place before 30th September 1998 and the defendant was (or may have been) aged 10-13 at the time of that conduct, the prosecutor must prove that the defendant was doli capax at the relevant time. To prove that a child had the capacity to commit a criminal offence, the prosecution must adduce independent evidence that the defendant knew that his conduct was seriously wrong. R v PF was a case involving what the defendant contended was ‘childish sexual experimentation’, and this case note advocates that consideration be given to how the law regulates young people’s sexuality and sexual experimentation.